1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to cashless gaming, more specifically to cashless gaming at table games.
2. Background
The gaming machine manufacturing industry provides a variety of gaming machines for the amusement of gaming machine players. An exemplary gaming machine is a slot machine. A slot machine is an electro-mechanical game wherein chance or the skill of a player determines the outcome of the game. Slot machines are usually found in casinos or other more informal gaming establishments.
Gaming machine manufacturers have introduced cashless enabled games such as a slot machine to the market and these have begun to find wide acceptance in the gaming industry. Cashless enabled games are so named because they can conduct financial exchanges using a mixture of traditional currencies and vouchers. Typically, a cashless enabled game has a gaming table device to produce vouchers and a voucher reader that supports automatic reading of vouchers. To coordinate the activities of multiple cashless enabled games, one or more cashless enabled games may be electronically coupled to a cashless enabled game system that controls the cashless operations of a cashless enabled game.
Over the last several years, cashless enabled games have found an increasing acceptance and use in the gaming industry with both the players, who enjoy the speed of play and ease of transporting their winnings around the casino, and the casinos who have realized significant labor savings in the form of reduced coin hopper reloads in the games, and an increase in revenue due to speed of play. Practical field experience with the application has illustrated that there are areas for improvement in current cashless systems.
One such area for improvement is how to use and exchange vouchers generated by cashless enabled game at a gaming table such as a poker table. Additionally, there exists a need to provide cashless payout from a gaming table.
This invention provides a solution for these needs.
Definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following definitions apply:                “Gaming Establishment”—A gaming entity such as a casino or other place where gambling takes place.        “Game”, “Gaming Machine”, or “Game Machine”—A gaming table or gaming machine such as any electro-mechanical game of chance. A Slot Machine is a sub-set of such games.        “Printer”—A printing device coupled to a Game, a vending machine or kiosk, or a point-of-sale (POS) system.        “Voucher”—Media, such as paper or rewritable card, containing sufficient information to identify at a minimum, an amount of money and a validation number used to authenticate the transaction.        “Promotional Coupon”—Media, such as paper or rewritable card, containing sufficient information to identify at a minimum, a promotional event or a promotional reward to a player and validation information.        “Rewritable Card”—Media such as a smart card, magnetic media, thermal media, thermal reversible media, RF fiber media, RFID tag media, or write once media which is used for game vouchers and promotional coupons.        “Host System”—A computer, back-end system, gaming system, network, or other system that sends and/or receives information to and/or from a printer or other component in a cashless enabled game or gaming table. Examples of a host system include a wagering issuance and redemption system, a player tracking system, and a promotional couponing system, among others.        “Point of Redemption”—Any kiosk, point-of-sale, cashier's cage, or other means whereby a player can redeem a game voucher or promotional coupon.        “RFID Chip”—A type of token used at gaming tables in lieu of cash which contain a Radio Frequency circuit that can hold information and does not require a direct electrical connection as an interface connection.        “TITO”—Acronym for Ticket In, Ticket Out, a form of cashless enabled gaming.        “SMIB”—Acronym for Slot Machine Interface Board, the board used to manage transactions of a slot machine, such as money in, money out, bills and tickets inserted, jackpots paid, etc.        “PTS”—Acronym for Player Tracking System. The system installed at a gaming establishment that is used to monitor game play activity by participating patrons. A PTS is a rudimentary part of the existing casino industry architecture.        “Cash-Out Vouchering System”—The system installed at a gaming establishment that is used to create cash-out voucher records and issue data packets which are used by a printer in a game to print a cash-out voucher. A Cash-Out Vouchering System is a rudimentary part of an existing casino industry architecture for casinos supporting cashless gaming.        